Illusion
by Duckett-1
Summary: Audrey Shrike is the Fifth Horseman—a talented, beautiful street magician specializing in escape and sleight of hand. Once she was given her tarot card as an invitation, her humble life was flipped on its head. Now, Audrey must prove herself again to get the recognition she deserves, all while—unknowingly—starting a battle for her heart between J. Daniel Atlas and Jack Wilder.
1. Chapter 1

Audrey Shrike stood before the daytime crowd of Central Park, near the tree with the card encased in glass that was a trick of her grandfather's, Lionel Shrike. She stood up on top of a park bench so the crowd starting to gather around her could see what she was going to do, including a man in a blue hoodie that she couldn't see the face of.

"I'm sure a lot of you here think that I'm your ordinary kind of magician," Audrey called, looking over the crowd with bright hazel eyes as she brushed her black hair from her face. "That I'm only here to do your classic mumbo-jumbo card tricks. Well, that's not completely wrong, but I've put my own little spin on it. But first I'll need some help from one of you."

She slipped an ordinary deck of cards from her pocket and hopped off of the park bench. She stepped up to a young boy, no older than ten or eleven years old, and knelt in front of him, with the card deck spread so he could pick any of the fifty-two cards that he wanted.

"What's your name?" She asked the kid softly.

"Jake," he said quietly, impressing Audrey by not backing into his mother's side as she watched beside him.

"Ooh, I like that name. Alright, Jake, pick any card you want," Audrey said with a smile, waiting for the boy to pluck a card from the stack.

He pulled one after a moment of hesitation.

"Okay," she said with a smile, "look at the card, and do your best to remember what it is. Think on it really, really hard."

He nodded after a moment of seriously focusing on the single card he had pulled before putting it down a moment later and looking up at Audrey again.

"You got it?" She asked him, and Jake nodded quickly.

"Alright," Audrey said, clapping once. "Now, tear that card to pieces, okay?"

Jake hesitated. "Are you sure?"

She laughed. "Of course I'm sure. It's my trick, isn't it?"

He nodded slowly.

She winked and urged him on.

Jake tore up the card.

"Do you still remember what it is?" Audrey asked, and Jake nodded again.

Audrey bounced back up to the park bench to stand above the crowd again, and she tossed her deck into the air. The crowd backed up so the cards could flutter downward in a seemingly random array, at least until they landed in the shape of the two of clubs.

She looked back at Jake and smiled. "Was that your card?"

Jake nodded slowly, in shock.

She hopped off the bench and picked up the torn pieces of the card, cupping both of her hands around them before blowing on it, and pulling free an intact two of clubs card.

She handed it toward Jake in between two of her fingers. "Keep that one if you want it."

Jake snatched it quickly, joining in on the loud applause that was starting to get louder and louder.

Audrey smiled and bowed as people dropped spare change and dollar bills into a hat nearby. "Thank you, guys. Tips are welcome if you're willing, and if you weren't impressed by that or you want to see more, come back here tonight to watch a completely different kind of magic trick—but you might want to leave the kids at home for this one."

* * *

Audrey stood before the crowd that had gathered a second time to watch her performance, including the man in the blue hoodie.

"I'm going to start with a simpler kind of escape trick," Audrey said, smiling slightly.

She pulled handcuffs out of her back pocket. "A girl's gotta have her toys, right?"

There were loud catcalls from the back of the crowd, and she pointed to a young man standing in the front with brown hair that looked slightly Bieber-esque. "You, come up here and lock me in."

There were more whistles from the crowd.

He stepped forward and took the cuffs from her, holding them in long fingers.

"What's your name?" Audrey asked him, looking up.

"Daniel," he said, looking up from the cuffs so his blue eyes met Audrey's deep hazel ones.

"Alright, Daniel," she said, motioning back toward the rest of the crowd. "Care to be my assistant for the time being?"

Daniel snorted. "Sure."

"Alright, can you prove to them that these are in fact real handcuffs?"

Daniel turned to the crowd and tugged on the locked sides of the cuffs, announcing they were very much real.

Audrey handed him the key, and he locked the cuff firmly around her tan wrist and backed away slightly.

"Now, just because this is one of my simple tricks doesn't mean everyone else can do it." She snapped her arm, and her wrist pulled free from the cuff. "See?"

There was applause from the crowd, including Daniel.

"Cool, right? And, no, you guys can't know." She pulled a second pair of cuffs from her things behind the bench, and motioned Danny back over.

"Now things are going to get a little more interesting." Audrey tugged free two more pairs of handcuffs, and she had Daniel restrain her ankles too.

He strapped them on quite tight.

"Oh," she said in surprise. "I think someone's done this before."

The crowd laughed, but Daniel turned slightly pink across his cheekbones.

"Someone time me," she called, "if it takes me more than thirty seconds to free myself, you guys get to learn the trick."

Multiple people pulled out the stopwatches on their phones.

"Tell me when to start," Audrey said, practically bending completely over the arm of the bench to look at the crowd.

"Go!" Multiple people called at the same time.

It took a little wiggling to get her first hand free, but after that, it took her almost no time to free her feet. On the last cuff, she tossed her hand up and hooked the cuff onto the branches of the Shrike Tree she was beside, no longer attached. "Time?"

"Twenty-three seconds," Daniel told her, sounding like he was trying to hide how impressed he was.

Audrey bowed. "And thank you, all of you lovely people!"

They all applauded.

After the crowd dissipated, she slipped the money she had earned into her wallet, pausing when she found a tarot card mixed in. She picked it up, looking at the symbol. Balance, with the picture of the tipping scales.

She flipped the card over, reading on the back.

 _March 29_

 _4:44 pm_

 _45 East Evan St._

 _NY, NY_

She looked at it closely. She knew exactly what it was for—it was an invitation to join the Eye.


	2. Chapter 2

Audrey walked up to the building at the address that sat on the back of her tarot card, moving up the apartment building until she saw three other people waiting outside the door, including the man, Daniel, that she had used as her assistant in a trick not so long ago. The other two, a man that looked to be about the age of her father, and a red haired woman that looked younger, were speaking with him.

She knocked on the side of the stair's railing. "Am I interrupting something?"

The three of them turned to look at her, noticing her card.

"You're Audrey, right?" Daniel asked, stepping forward to shake her hand. "Audrey Shrike? We met a little while ago in Central Park."

"I remember," she said with a nod, her bangs falling into her eyes as she looked up at him. "And you're Daniel, right? I didn't realize you were a magician."

"Really?" The redhead asked, almost laughing.

"No," Audrey admitted, "I actually used him as an assistant for one of my tricks."

The woman laughed. "Thank you for taking a shot to his massive ego like that. I like you already. My name's Henley, Henley Reeves."

Audrey nodded. "Pleased to meet you, Henley. I'm Audrey, as Daniel said earlier."

Henley nodded in greeting. "Glad to see another girl that's involved in… whatever this is."

Audrey nodded again, smiling slightly before she turned to the last member of their group—the oldest, who she recognized as Merritt McKinney, a mentalist that used to be quite famous. She had watched his videos online, and had actually been a fan.

"Merritt McKinney, right?" She asked with a small smile as she stepped forward to introduce herself to the man in the hat.

Merritt smiled. "Always nice to meet such a young beauty. Are you a fan?"

She shrugged slightly. "Have been for a while. You made me want to try mentalism for a long time."

"Oh," Merritt said with a proud smile. "Maybe I can teach you a few tricks sometime."

She nodded slightly. "I would like that very much, Mister McKinney."

"Oh, no no," Merritt corrected quickly. "No _mister_ , just Merritt."

Audrey smiled again. "Good to know."

Daniel rolled his eyes, turning to leave because he didn't want to hear any more of Merritt's constant flirting with Audrey and Henley, and he spotted a young man that was looking at the group, starstruck.

"No way. Daniel Atlas," he said as he moved forward, smiling broadly. "Dude, I have seen everything that you have ever done. I mean, you're like. I idolize you, seriously."

Daniel smiled and reached to shake his hand. "Ah, a true fan. How nice to meet you."

"I'm Jack, by the way," the young man introduced.

"You've really heard of him?" Audrey blurted, still confused at why she knew the name but didn't know the face to put with it, and had actually pulled him as an assistant.

"You haven't?" Jack asked, almost shocked.

"I have, but I didn't _recognize_ him." She motioned to Daniel.

"Thank you," Daniel grumbled, "for that second massive shot to my ego."

Henley smiled. "I'm might owe you for those if you keep this up."

Audrey grinned and shrugged.

"Question," Merritt said to Jack, interrupting the small moment of bromance and the roasting of Danny that was taking place. "Did you get one of these?" He held up the tarot card.

"Oh, yeah." Jack pulled out the tarot card and showed them which symbol he had with a sheepish smile. " _Death_."

Henley held hers up next, showing Jack and then the other three magicians standing around her. " _The High Priestess_."

Audrey pulled out her card. " _Balance_."

Daniel held his up next. "I'm _the Lover_."

Henley pressed a fist to her mouth and covered her next words with a cough. "Three minutes."

Audrey grinned, containing herself from laughing while Daniel frowned, and then they looked to Merritt.

" _Hermit_ ," he stated, tapping the card against the back of his hand.

"Are we… are we waiting for someone?" Jack asked, still smiling and completely starstruck. "Why are just standing here?"

"The door's locked," Daniel, Henley, and Merritt all said at the same time.

Audrey had a feeling that Jack was their answer to that—the Eye's way of making sure they were all together before they went in.

Jack shook his head, still grinning. "Oh, no. Nothing's ever locked." He pushed past Daniel and Henley, and Merritt stepped out of his way as he pulled a lock pick from his pocket and slid it into the old door.

Audrey smiled a little as Merritt looked back at all of the younger magicians with a slight, impressed nod.

Jack pushed the door open.

"What is this place?" Henley asked, making a noise of disgust as they five magicians walked past a rotten looking bathroom.

"Ugh," Merritt muttered, "and I thought _my_ apartment was nasty."

They continued to walk through, Daniel in the front so he could see everything first, and make sure everything was under control.

"Man, it's freezing in here," Jack complained.

Audrey shivered in agreement.

Daniel slowed them down as he spotted a folded card sitting up next to a white rose.

"What's that?" Henley asked quickly.

"I don't know." Daniel moved forward a little faster.

Audrey ducked by Daniel's arm and moved to pick up the rose.

Daniel frowned and picked up the note, which read in typed, bold letters: **_Now You_** **_Don't_**.

"What's it say?" Merritt asked as Jack and Henley huddled around Daniel to read it.

Daniel read the note out loud slowly, confused.

"A rose by any other name," Audrey hummed after plucking the white rose from the floor. She backed up and placed the rose in a glass pitcher of water with a small _plink_.

Water suddenly flowed from around the pitcher, and everyone backed up quickly.

"Whoa," Daniel said, almost with a surprised laugh.

"Guys, what's happening?" Jack asked slowly.

"Whoa," Merritt repeated from Daniel's statement, though his lacked the surprise and was more concerned. "Look at that."

The water flowed into deep black grooves in the floor and began to fill the interconnected spaces.

Daniel repeated his former statement, this time more amazed.

The grooves filled completely and opened at the bottom, releasing a white cloudy gas that almost looked like thick steam.

"It's gas," Jack said in shock, backing up quickly.

Audrey smiled in amusement as Merritt spoke calmingly. "Relax, it's just dry ice."

"Wait, what do you think this is all about?" Daniel asked with a growing smile, looking between the four other magicians.

"Wait." Merritt reached a hand up to the side of his face, closing his eyes for a long moment. "I got nothing."

Daniel rolled his eyes. "Thank you. Thank you for the delay."

"I'm just trying to create the space for _wisdom_ ," Merritt said with a wave of his arms.

"Danny, be honest. Did you do this?" Henley asked warily.

Audrey rolled her eyes and slipped by them, hazel eyes glittering with amusement as she looked around for the next clue of what this could be about.

"No," Daniel said quickly, turning to look at Jack with a pointed finger. "Wait, did you do this?"

Jack shrugged sheepishly. "I wish."

"Why didn't anyone ask me if I did it?" Merritt asked with a frown.

Audrey snorted again.

"Wait a minute," Daniel said in shock. "Audrey, did _you_ do this?"

"No no," Audrey said quickly. "But I might know who—or what—did."

"Care to share?" Jack asked warily as Audrey pointed her flashlight at a camera or a projector down the hall after Danny tested the light switch.

Merritt tightened a bulb, and the projector turned on—four of them, actually.

They showed blueprints, plans for what the Eye had called be five of them to do.

The Four Horsemen. But where would Audrey fit?


	3. Chapter 3

" _Merritt McKinney_ ," a booming voice announced as a screen flashed through pictures of the Horsemen that were about to step onstage—all but Audrey. She was a glorified stage manager, though she was easily as good or better at all of their tricks in rehearsal than any of them were. " _Daniel Atlas, Henley Reeves, Jack Wilder. Arthur Tressler and the MGM Grand proudly present the Four Horsemen!_ "

The crowd cheered loudly as the four walked out onstage, and Audrey watched from the back.

"Thank you," Merritt said, smiling and waving, and clearly glad to be in the spotlight once again. "Tonight, we would like to try something that will, well, set us a bit apart."

Henley picked up the dialogue next. "For our final trick, we're going to do something never before seen on a Las Vegas stage—"

"Or any stage for that matter," Jack pointed out.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Danny said, looking out to the crowd. "Tonight, we are going to rob a bank."

The audience erupted.

Jack and Danny glanced back to Audrey, and she nodded slightly to signal them on.

"That's a lot of excitement for a crime," Danny commented with a smile.

"I'm getting excited," Henley said quickly, looking to the crowd as she addressed them with a flourishing wave of her arm. "What about you, people?"

The cheering grew so loud it was thunderous.

Danny chuckled. "Now, please, please, settle down. Now who here has a bank they would like us to rob?"

Almost every person in the crowd raised a hand.

Audrey looked over to a man that wasn't with a frown, turning a security camera toward him on her iPad and zooming in. She recognized him almost immediately—Thaddeus Bradley, the magician debunker. He was the reason her grandfather had died.

She turned the camera back where it was supposed to be and turned back to the show.

"That's a lot of people with a vendetta," Danny stated, "so we'll choose one at random. My associates will make sure, right?"

The crowd pushed forward as Jack, Merritt, and Henley grabbed glass bowls filled with what looked like ping-pong balls from the back with Audrey.

"Thank you, dear," Merritt said with a smile and a wink.

She rolled her eyes and motioned him on.

"Jack," Danny said as the youngest male Horseman knelt over the crowd and had someone pull free a ball. "Will you toss me the section?"

Jack tossed the ball almost leisurely, and it bounced in front of Danny before he caught it. "Thank you. We have Section B. Can section be show themselves?"

The section waved and cheered.

"Now for the rows," Danny said simply.

Merritt tossed him on of the balls.

"Thank you, Merritt. We are looking at row number five. Where is that?"

The row cheered.

'And, Henley, could I please have a random seat number?"

Henley tossed the ball, and Danny barely caught—much to Audrey's amusement.

"Oh," Danny said pleasantly. "Lucky number thirteen. B-Five-Thirteen, where are you?"

The audience applauded as a dark-haired man waved.

"Sir, please stand up," Danny said, and all the Horsemen motioned for him to get to his feet. "Ah, there you are. Hi. Could you confirm that this is in fact your seat? B-Five-Thirteen."

The man turned to look at the number on the back of his seat, turned to face them again, and nodded. "Yes."

"Okay, wonderful." Danny clapped his hands together. "Now, could you please tell us your name and the name of your bank?"

"Well," the man said through a thick French accent. "My name is Etienne Forcier, and my bank is Credit Republicain de Paris."

"French," Danny said with a nod and a slight glance downward before he looked quickly at the other Horsemen—including an almost nonexistent glance to Audrey backstage. "Okay. Uh… We were hoping for something a little more local, a kind of mom-and-pop credit union with no security. But that's fine, a promise is a promise. Could you please come up to the stage, and we'll rob your bank."

The crowd cheered again, and Danny swapped the subject.

"And while he does that… There is someone here tonight that without whom tonight would not be possible—without whom we would just be four magicians working the circuit, trying to get… Well, actually, trying to get here."

Audrey closed her eyes and took a deep breath. _Four magicians,_ she thought bitterly, _as if they could do any of it without me._

Danny continued on. "You probably know this man, if not from one of the many, many companies he puts his name on. He is our friend, and he is our benefactor. Mister Arthur Tressler. Please stand up, Art, please stand up."

"The only man here with the Queen's cell phone number," Merritt teased with a smile, pulling a few laughs from the crowd. "Actually, please, stay standing, Art. I want to say that when we came to Mister Tressler, we promised that, as a unit, we could become the biggest name in magic."

Audrey held the teleportation helmet backstage, waiting for Jack to get it.

Jack walked up to her and shook his head. "Nah, you're coming out here."

"What?!" Audrey asked in quiet alarm. "No, Jack, I can't. It'll m—"

"Make the show better and give you the recognition you deserve," Jack finished for her, taking Audrey's hand. "Now let's go."

"So we wanted to say thank you," Henley finished. "And, by the way, Art, you'll notice on the sign out front, we made sure they put your name on top."

"If you turn out to be as good as you think you are, dear girl, that won't be necessary much longer," Arthur said with a smile as he sat back down.

"We haven't done our closer yet," Henley pointed out. "Why don't you watch it, and then you can decide for yourself. Ladies and gentlemen, Arthur Tressler!"

"Thank you," Danny said, calling attention back to him. "And, of course, once again, the Cardinal of Clairvoyance, Merritt McKinney."

The attention was turned back to the trick at hand, where Etienne stood beside Merritt after a quick bout of hypnosis.

Merritt caught on quickly when he saw Jack tugging out Audrey. "Etienne, what Jack and our lovely stage manager and Fifth Horseman, Audrey Shrike—everyone, say hello to our young beauty—are bringing to the stage now is what we in the magic world call a teleportation helmet. You will need to wear this, as it will allow you to literally fold through space and time to your bank in the… Eighth? No, _ninth_ arrondissement."

"Yeah," Etienne said with a nod when Merritt guessed it right.

"Now, once you are there we will be able to speak with you through this helmet. Now, Audrey, if you will be so kind."

Audrey handed Merritt the teleportation helmet, and he slipped it onto Etienne's head.

"Oh, my God, that's beautiful," Merritt said, and the audience chuckled. "It has the added attraction of being very stylish. It's about time that the French learned from America on that subject."

He looked at Audrey. "Isn't that a beautiful piece of headgear? Give it up for the beautiful Audrey Shrike everybody!"

The Horsemen applauded, especially Jack, who was clearly pleased with himself for pulling her out onto the stage for her well-deserved spotlight, at least it was well deserved to him.

Audrey waved and moved to the back of the stage again as the crowd cheered for her for the first time in a long time.

She took a deep breath, shaking her head slightly. She would've been better off if she had never tasted spotlight again. Every time Jack or Merritt or Henley pulled a stunt like that to get her involved, it made it harder to adjust to being behind the curtain, and it made Danny twitchy.

Danny stepped up to Etienne next. "Before you go anywhere, could you please pick a card, any card."

Etienne reached for one, and Danny cut him short by teasing him. "Oh, not that card. No, that's an old American joke, you can take that one."

He plucked the card free.

"Okay. This one? Show it to your friends in Section B, but not to us."

Etienne displayed the card to Section B.

"Okay, great," Danny continued. "Now if you could just sign your name there. In English, if possible."

"That's good," Merritt said in approval as Danny went on.

"Put it in your pocket."

"Now for one tiny detail!" Henley called, pulling a cloth from the pocket of her jacket.

The cloth grew into a translucent black curtain, which swirled and tumbled between the Four Horsemen onstage, bringing gasps and cheers from the audience as the curtain disappeared, and a teleportation machine was left there.

Merritt stepped forward with the Frenchman. "Now, Etienne, let's step into this cockamamie contraption. And I'll step off of it. Bonne chance. It's 11:50 _pm_ here in Vegas. That's 8:50 _am_ in Paris. Your bank opens in less than ten minutes."

"One!" Jack called as Henley pulled down a transparent tube-like structure from the top of the teleportation machine.

"Two!" Danny called next.

"Three!" Henley called, and the machine slammed shut.

Everyone gasped, including the Horsemen.

Merritt let out a questioning expletive.

"Wow!" Henley sounded shocked. "Etienne?"

"Whoa," Danny said at the same time, with a shocked expression. "Etienne?"

"It wasn't supposed to happen like that, was it?" Merritt asked with a frown. "I liked that little French guy."

"Wait—there he is," Danny said, pointing to the large monitors above the crowd and surrounding the stage.

The crowd started to cheer, but Danny quieted them quickly. "No, no, no, no, please, please. This is Daniel Atlas. Can you hear me?"

"Etienne, are you okay?" Henley called in question.

"Yes," Etienne replied quickly.

"Perfect," Danny said in a pleased tone. "What do you see in there?"

"Money," Etienne said simply, in so much shock he couldn't say more. "Is this real?"

"Yes," Danny said as he leaned a little closer to the screen. "Looks like three million or so Euros worth."

Etienne said something in quiet French.

"Okay, now here's what we're gonna need you to do," Danny started again. "I want you to take that card out of your pocket, and take the ticket stub from tonight's show, and I want you to put it right there in the middle of the money."

Etienne hovered the card and the ticket stub over a gap in the money.

"Now drop it."

The Frenchman dropped it.

Danny continued giving directions. "Now, on the side of your helmet you should feel a button—don't press it just yet."

"That button activates an air duct that connects Paris to Las Vegas," Merritt explained.

"Alright, now, Etienne, hold on tight," Jack called with a lopsided grin like the Cheshire Cat. "You might feel a bit of a vacuum."

Merritt chuckled.

The sound of air whooshed through the bank, echoing to Vegas through Etienne's helmet.

Then there was a rumbling noise from the ceiling, and the Four Horsemen onstage looked up.

"Wait a second," Danny said, holding out a hand to halt any cheering from the audience.

Three million dollars in Euros fluttered from the vents over their heads, and the crowd exploded into cheers.

Audrey laughed at their happiness.

"Thank you, Etienne!" Danny called. "Thank you, everyone!"

"We are the the Four Horsemen!" Henley called out to the crowd. "And goodnight!"


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry for the super short chapter! I promise the next one will be longer. The interrogation with Audrey Shrike and Dylan Rhodes. *wink wink* **

* * *

Audrey smiled and applauded them when they reached the back of the stage. "Great job, guys."

"Really?" Danny snapped. "Are you congratulating us or yourself?"

Audrey was momentarily startled. "What?"

"Ease up, man," Jack said with a frown. "It wasn't her idea, it was mine."

"Speaking of which, why did you do it?" Danny asked, turning to Jack. "Was the show not entertaining enough? Or were you trying to throw me off?"

"She's a Horseman, Danny," Jack defended. "She's one of us—probably the best of us, if you could push past your ego for ten whole seconds."

"Yeah, Danny, back off," Henley said with a frown. "She was chosen, too. She's the one that interprets our plans from the Eye."

"Everyone just take it easy," Merritt said calmly. "She's part of the team, Danny. She deserves to be known too."

"I know, but we need to discuss these things so it doesn't throw anyone off."

Jack snorted. "The only person it threw off was you, and that's only because you're that big a control freak."

"Guys," Audrey snapped, shaking her head. "It isn't that big a deal. I didn't choose to go out there—I know where my place is with the Horsemen, and it's behind the curtain. Despite how much I don't like it."

Danny did seem apologetic when he looked at her. "I'm not saying I don't want you onstage—you were born to perform—but I just would like for the group to keep the spontaneous moments minimal."

Jack shook his head, sighing. "Fine."

"Thank you," Audrey said with a sigh. "Now let's get out of here before the cops show up.


	5. Chapter 5

Audrey had just gotten dressed from the shower as she dried her hair with a towel, leaving the dark strands stringy with dampness. She glanced at the rest of the Horsemen—Merritt was lounging on the couch with a book on his chest, Jack was toying boredly with his cards, Danny was sitting at the bar by the window, and Henley was pulling her luggage from her rented bedroom.

Suddenly the door burst open, and a crowd of FBI agents pointed their weapons at them, ordering them to stand down, or in Merritt's case, drop the book.

Henley smiled at them after a dramatic gasp. "Oh my! Do one of you guys mind giving us a hand with our bags?"

Only a few minutes later, the Five Horsemen were being escorted through the casino by the FBI agents, who also toted their luggage. The crowd of bystanders in the casino cheered and applauded the magicians.

Audrey smiled and rolled her eyes, amused by Jack's taunting expression and Danny's expression that was similarly smartass.

* * *

Special Agent Dylan Rhodes walked into Agent Evans's office. "Boss, please tell me this is a joke. I just got Willy Mears to finger Paulie Attanasio. I'm a month, two tops, away from blowing this whole thing open."

Fuller pushed to his feet and walked out of his office, and Rhodes followed, still trying to get off this crazy magic case. "Get Turkelson."

"He's in Atlantic City," Evans said simply.

"What about Cowen?" Rhodes tried again. "Look at him. He's just sitting there on his ass."

Cowan glared up at Rhodes as he followed Evans to a conference room. "Hilarious, Rhodes."

Rhodes turned to look at him just before he walked through the door frame, and he growled sarcastically, "I love you."

"Asshole," Cowan grumbled as Rhodes disappeared through the door.

Rhodes went back to complaining to Evans. "I don't have time for this magic crap."

Evans looked at him. "This crap just pulled three million euros out of a Parisian bank."

Rhodes raised an eyebrow in shock. "That's how much they got?"

"Yeah."

A young blonde woman in a blazer turned to look at Rhodes and Fuller. "Actually, three-point-two," she corrected with a thick French accent.

"Who's she?" Rhodes asked Evans in a mumble, and then he turned to her and spoke in a normal tone. "Who are you?"

"Alma Dray," she introduced, "from Interpol."

Rhodes groaned again. "You've gotta be kidding me. It's bad enough they got me chasing David Copperfield and friends. Now I'm being saddled with—no offense—Interpol?"

Alma seemed unfazed. "I look forward to working with you, too, Agent Rhodes."

Rhodes looked at her exasperatedly. "I'm sorry. I don't think I'm going to need your help on this. Okay?" He turned back toward Evans. "Where's the French guy?"

"I already spoke to him," Alma interrupted.

"Oh, you did?" Rhodes snapped. "You spoke to my witness before me?"

"Your witness?" Alma argued, though she didn't raise her voice. "I thought you didn't want the case? Besides, he's useless."

"Oh, really?" Rhodes asked in a mockingly ignorant tone. "Why is that?"

"Because he believes their magic was real."

"Oh, he believes the magic was real?" Rhodes repeated, again, in a mocking tone. "You're right, he probably is useless. Is it okay with Interpol if we talk to him, too?"

"MmHmm," Alma hummed calmly.

"Thank you," Rhodes snapped one more time before walking to interrogation.

* * *

"I have never stolen a thing in my life," Etienne swore as he sat on the suspect side of the table. "I tried to give the money back, but they won't take it."

"Okay, okay, okay," Rhodes said calmly. "Let's just say you robbed a bank."

"I did."

"Fine. Fantastic. You did." Rhodes leaned over on the table. "But since I'm new to this, can you explain to me how you went from Las Vegas to Paris in three seconds?"

"With the teleportation helmet," Etienne said with full conviction.

"Okay," Rhodes said as he shoved up from the table. "What the hell is going on here?"

"He was hypnotized during the show," Alma explained simply. "I told you, he's useless."

Rhodes whirled on her. "Okay, I'll deal with you when I'm done with this other bullshit."

Etienne suddenly rose to his feet and climbed on the table, acting as though he were playing second string violin in a symphony.

"Hey!" Rhodes complained.

"During the show, half the audience was hypnotized to believe they were in the Philharmonic," Fuller explained. "I guess that 'bullshit' was the trigger word."

"Okay," Rhodes said in a growing tone of exasperation. "Hey, hey. Coutez. Etienne, come on down from there. You're not in the Philharmonic." He looked at Alma. "How do you say 'stop' in French?"

"Stop," she said simply.

"Tell him to stop," Rhodes tried again.

"No, I can't," Alma said with a shrug of her crossed arms. "You just have to let him finish his movement."

Rhodes was almost purple with frustration. "Okay, I need a timeout. Too many French people in one room." He marched from the interrogation room, and Alma followed him.

"Agent Rhodes!"

"Huh?" He asked as he turned back toward her.

"I'm ordered by my bosses to have a report," Alma informed him sharply. "And until we have one, I'm here, like it or not."

Rhodes was looking in the other interrogation rooms, passing Henley first as Alma kept talking.

"So we can work together, or you can continue to follow behind asking the same exact questions I'm asking. It's up to you."

Rhodes looked in an interrogation room and frowned when he saw Jack snoring in the chair. "Hmmm."

"I'm not finished," Alma snapped as they stopped in front of the room with Merritt in it. "I just flew twelve hours after what was already a long day. And I do not handle jet lag well. So if you want to see who can be grumpier, I promise you, you will lose."

"Hmmm," Rhodes hummed again. "MmHmm, fine. Who do you want to talk to first? Him?" He pointed to Merritt through the one-way window, as Merritt looked right back at them like the glass wasn't even there. That made Rhodes a little uneasy.

"Dylan, for the record," Fuller started almost anxiously. "Mentalism has never actually been proven to be accurate."

Rhodes wasn't really affected by the statement. "Okay."

"That is to say," Fuller continued, "that it's not a science. It's more for entertainment."

"Alright." Rhodes was starting to wonder what had Fuller so shaken.

"Just don't believe anything the guys says. That's all."

Rhodes nodded before he slid inside.

They sat across the table from a comfortably lounging Merritt McKinney.

"Please convey my deepest apologies to your colleague out there," Merritt said, his tone serious despite the obvious underlying amusement. "I'm really sorry about this whole Tranny Tuesday thing. I was out of line."

"Tranny Tuesday?" Rhodes asked in confusion.

"Well," Merritt started to explain. "It's an arrangement that he and his wife have. Or might not have, depending on if you believe everything Agent Fuller is saying to be correct. But isn't it a proud tradition in the FBI of men wearing dresses?" He looked over to the one-way window, where he figured Fuller was watching. "No shame, Agent Fuller. No shame."

He added a flourishing snap on the end of his statement before looking back to Rhodes and Alma with a chuckle. "I'm just having fun."

* * *

They walked to look in the next one-way window, and Rhodes froze. "Oh my God," he whispered in shock, eyes going wide at the woman in the room.

"What?" Alma asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Nothing," Rhodes said quickly, recovering his composure. "Who is she?" He knew _exactly_ who she was.

"Audrey Shrike," Alma answered, shaking her head slightly at the sudden change in his expression. He was hiding something, but she wasn't going to press. At least not right now. "She's their stage manager—their so-called Fifth Horseman. She's a magician too. Looks like she specializes in escape artistry and sleight of hand."

Rhodes muttered something under his breath that the Interpol agent was sure wasn't very polite. "Alright," he addressed her aloud. "I'm going in there alone."

"What?" Alma almost demanded. "No! This is my investigation too."

"I know," he said, obviously trying his hardest to stay composed. "But, like you said, she's an _escape artist_. I need you at the door just in case she tries to pull something."

"She hasn't yet."

"She's a showman," Rhodes pointed out. "What's the point in pulling off a trick if there's no one there to see it?"

They looked at the one-way mirror just in time to watch Audrey snap one of the cuffs free from her wrist, look at it for a moment, and clip it back on all while swinging the chain like a jump rope.

Alma's lips squeezed into a thin line. She didn't like it, but he had a point. "Fine. I'll guard the door."

"Thank you," Rhodes said, letting out an exasperated breath as he opened the door.

Audrey looked up as he entered, smirking slightly at the sight of the FBI agent that just entered. They had to be joking. "Well, don't you look familiar, Agent… Rhodes, is it?"

Rhodes didn't say anything as he sat across from her at the table, looking unimpressed.

She raised an eyebrow. "So, um, why am I here again?"

Rhodes rolled his eyes. "You robbed a bank."

Audrey feigned a shocked expression. "Did I? I don't recall. I certainly wasn't part of the _act_ , which is what it was."

"Someone snagged three million euros from a Parisian bank, the same bank mentioned in the show you manage, the same bank where you and your fellow Horsemen 'teleported' Etienne Forcier in the middle of your show, which the witness is convinced is one-hundred-percent real."

Audrey smirked, looking at Rhodes with a steady hazel gaze. "How magical."

He leaned forward, dropping his voice to a level that Alma couldn't hear from outside the door. "Audrey, I don't care how old you are. One more smart-ass remark and I _will_ ground you."

She laughed, shaking her head. "Isn't that just called arresting at this point? You don't have any evidence to use against any of the Horsemen, especially not me." Her voice dropped as she leaned forward, smirking again. "Isn't that right, Dad?"

"You robbed a bank!" His voice was no longer the low tone that it had been.

"Really?" She asked in an innocent tone. "What does your witness say about that? Can _he_ prove it? Is that the evidence you have? If it is, that's all you have on us."

He growled in frustration. "I know you were there. You set up the whole show."

She raised both eyebrows, her voice dropping again. "Well, that's an odd thing to know. Especially since we haven't seen each other in… four years?"

Rhodes shook his head, his tone matching hers again. "Old habits, Audrey. You set up all your own tricks too."

She smiled. "Like this one?" She lifted her hand, swinging the chain for the cuffs on one finger. The cuffs that were no longer around her wrists.

"Put those back on," Rhodes ordered sharply.

"I'm good."

"Don't make me cuff you myself."

"Testy, testy," Audrey _tsked_ , shaking her head and smirking again. "Relax, old man, I'm not going anywhere. If I did, you'd have a real reason to arrest me, and that might make Christmas a little awkward. Besides, I just saved you some extra effort later, since you don't have any evidence that can actually hold any of us here."

He was about to speak again when he was interrupted by Alma opening the door and letting another agent in. "She's free to go."

"What?!" Rhodes demanded. "How is that even possible?"

"Take it up with Evans," the agent replied, shaking his head.

Audrey stood up with a smile. "I had a nice time catching up," she said quietly, striding out of the room with such a bounce in her step she was almost skipping.

* * *

As all five Horsemen exited the building, Rhodes rushed over to Evans. "Boss, what are we doing? We're letting them go? They all but admitted they're going to do it again."

"Half an hour ago you didn't give a damn about them," Evans started, looking at Rhodes almost curiously. "What changed?"

"I met them."

"Hey. Guys," Fuller called, jogging over and holding some papers. "Hey, I ran a check on the audience. Most of it was just filler people that Tressier dragged in to pack the room. But guess who was sitting there in the back, filming the whole damn thing?

"I don't know," Rhodes said shortly.

"Thaddeus Bradley."

Rhodes looked at him blankly.

"Thaddeus Bradley," Fuller tried again, "the guy from TV with the DVDs and shows?"

"No." Rhodes still didn't have a clue.

"Okay, well, he debunks magicians. He exposes them. He shows you how to do their tricks."

That held Rhodes's attention. "Get him on the phone."

"I did. You're having lunch with him in 45."

"Good."


End file.
